Medical Marijuana Is Now A $1.7 Billion Market

The medical marijuana market has had a significant growth this year. With seven states who have opened shop and five more states planned to approve medical marijuana outlets this year, cannabis could save many states’ economies. Medical News Today reports:

Medical marijuana is now a serious $1.7 billion dollar market, according to a new report released this week by an independent financial analysis firm that specializes in new and unique markets. Currently, 24.8 million people are eligible to receive a recommendation and purchase marijuana legally under state laws, and approximately 730,000 people actually do.

Ted Rose, editor of the new State of the Medical Marijuana Market 2011 report, comments:

“Medical marijuana markets are rapidly growing across the country and will reach $1.7 billion this year. We undertook this effort because we noticed a dearth of reliable market information about this politically charged business. Hundreds of businesses exist around the country that cultivate and sell marijuana to customers. Many of these businesses emerged in the wake of the Obama Administration’s decision to deprioritize federal prosecutions of individuals and business complying with state medical marijuana laws. The State of the Medical Marijuana Markets 2011 shows which states represent the most active markets, who is making money, and how are they doing it.”

Related

Delightful irony: because the War On Drugs has been such a drain on the economy, state governments now have to make a deal with the “Devil Weed” to acquire revenue.

DeepCough

Delightful irony: because the War On Drugs has been such a drain on the economy, state governments now have to make a deal with the “Devil Weed” to acquire revenue.

justagirl

i wonder if this figure includes attorney’s fees and court fines and costs.

justagirl

i wonder if this figure includes attorney’s fees and court fines and costs.

joe

State and federal governments in the United States face massive looming fiscal deficits. One policy change that can reduce deficits is ending the drug war. Legalization means reduced expenditure on enforcement and an increase in tax revenue from legalized sales.
This report estimates that legalizing drugs would save roughly $41.3 billion per year in government expenditure on enforcement of prohibition. Of these savings, $25.7 billion would accrue to state and local governments, while $15.6 billion would accrue to the federal government. Approximately $8.7 billion of the savings would result from legalization of marijuana and $32.6 billion from legalization of other drugs.
The report also estimates that drug legalization would yield tax revenue of $46.7 billion annually, assuming legal drugs were taxed at rates comparable to those on alcohol and tobacco. Approximately $8.7 billion of this revenue would result from legalization of marijuana and $38.0 billion from legalization of other drugs.

Many of the problems the drug war purports to resolve are in fact caused by the drug war itself. So-called “drug-related” crime is a direct result of drug prohibition’s distortion of immutable laws of supply and demand.

Who really profits from drug prohibition?

-Organized Crime.
According to the United Nations, drug trafficking is a $400 billion per year industry, equaling 8% of the world’s trade. By empowering organized criminals with enormous profits, prohibition stimulates violence, corrupts governments at all levels, and erodes community order.

-Arms manufacturers, the prison industry, and other special interest groups.
• Anti-drug aid to other nations often comes in the form of military assistance. This year’s National Drug Control Budget, for example, includes $452 million to provide Blackhawk helicopters to the Colombian military to fight coca cultivation. Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., the exclusive manufacturer of the helicopters, lobbied heavily in favor of an escalation of aid to Colombia.
• With the overall prison population at roughly 2 million, nearly 500,000 of whom are drug law violators, federal and state governments have been forced to build an ever increasing number of prisons to house what former drug czar Barry McCaffrey has called “America’s internal gulag.”
• Drug testing is a lucrative industry with a strong interest in perpetuating drug war hysteria. It is estimated that the United States spends $1 billion annually to drug test about 20 million of our workers, in spite of research demonstrating the high cost and low effectiveness of this assault on American privacy.

-Corrupt Law Enforcement.
• A 1998 report by the General Accounting Office notes: …several studies and investigations of drug-related police corruption found on-duty police officers engaged in serious criminal activities such as (1) conducting unconstitutional searches and seizures; (2) stealing money and/or drugs from drug dealers; (3) selling stolen drugs; (4) protecting drug operations; (5) providing false testimony; and (6) submitting false crime reports.
• The same study found that on average, half of all police officers convicted as a result of FBI-led corruption cases between 1993 and 1997 were convicted for drug-related offenses

joe

State and federal governments in the United States face massive looming fiscal deficits. One policy change that can reduce deficits is ending the drug war. Legalization means reduced expenditure on enforcement and an increase in tax revenue from legalized sales.
This report estimates that legalizing drugs would save roughly $41.3 billion per year in government expenditure on enforcement of prohibition. Of these savings, $25.7 billion would accrue to state and local governments, while $15.6 billion would accrue to the federal government. Approximately $8.7 billion of the savings would result from legalization of marijuana and $32.6 billion from legalization of other drugs.
The report also estimates that drug legalization would yield tax revenue of $46.7 billion annually, assuming legal drugs were taxed at rates comparable to those on alcohol and tobacco. Approximately $8.7 billion of this revenue would result from legalization of marijuana and $38.0 billion from legalization of other drugs.

Many of the problems the drug war purports to resolve are in fact caused by the drug war itself. So-called “drug-related” crime is a direct result of drug prohibition’s distortion of immutable laws of supply and demand.

Who really profits from drug prohibition?

-Organized Crime.
According to the United Nations, drug trafficking is a $400 billion per year industry, equaling 8% of the world’s trade. By empowering organized criminals with enormous profits, prohibition stimulates violence, corrupts governments at all levels, and erodes community order.

-Arms manufacturers, the prison industry, and other special interest groups.
• Anti-drug aid to other nations often comes in the form of military assistance. This year’s National Drug Control Budget, for example, includes $452 million to provide Blackhawk helicopters to the Colombian military to fight coca cultivation. Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., the exclusive manufacturer of the helicopters, lobbied heavily in favor of an escalation of aid to Colombia.
• With the overall prison population at roughly 2 million, nearly 500,000 of whom are drug law violators, federal and state governments have been forced to build an ever increasing number of prisons to house what former drug czar Barry McCaffrey has called “America’s internal gulag.”
• Drug testing is a lucrative industry with a strong interest in perpetuating drug war hysteria. It is estimated that the United States spends $1 billion annually to drug test about 20 million of our workers, in spite of research demonstrating the high cost and low effectiveness of this assault on American privacy.

-Corrupt Law Enforcement.
• A 1998 report by the General Accounting Office notes: …several studies and investigations of drug-related police corruption found on-duty police officers engaged in serious criminal activities such as (1) conducting unconstitutional searches and seizures; (2) stealing money and/or drugs from drug dealers; (3) selling stolen drugs; (4) protecting drug operations; (5) providing false testimony; and (6) submitting false crime reports.
• The same study found that on average, half of all police officers convicted as a result of FBI-led corruption cases between 1993 and 1997 were convicted for drug-related offenses

LoserUser

In the spring of 1971 at the age of 22 I found myself serving 2-5 in a medium security facility for adult offenders after being convicted of felony narcotics possession with intent to sell(a heroin bust). At the time I was still on probation for my 1st felony narcotics conviction. At the very least, marijuana distribution, control & use should be legalized across the land in the USA. My advise to young users who partake outside the law, be very, very careful. The penalty will change you life forever.

LoserUser

In the spring of 1971 at the age of 22 I found myself serving 2-5 in a medium security facility for adult offenders after being convicted of felony narcotics possession with intent to sell(a heroin bust). At the time I was still on probation for my 1st felony narcotics conviction. At the very least, marijuana distribution, control & use should be legalized across the land in the USA. My advise to young users who partake outside the law, be very, very careful. The penalty will change you life forever.

grooveboss

meh I want to smoke not to get sick, I do want to have to be sick to be able to smoke.

grooveboss

meh I want to smoke not to get sick, I do want to have to be sick to be able to smoke.

Anonymous

Only in America, Just Free the Damn Weed

MoralDrift

Only in America, Just Free the Damn Weed

Broubie

looking for a web site that has dates and locations for upcoming trade shows in the USA